


Rangers in the Drift

by kyrdwyn



Category: Pacific Rim (2013), Power Rangers Dino Charge
Genre: F/M, I couldn't help myself, M/M, Power Rangers Pacific Rim AU, not sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-23
Updated: 2015-03-23
Packaged: 2018-03-19 04:57:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,609
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3597174
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kyrdwyn/pseuds/kyrdwyn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Power Rangers Dino Charge - Pacific Rim AU.  Chase is a Ranger without a co-pilot.  That's about to change.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Rangers in the Drift

**Author's Note:**

> I asked SchizoCherri for fic ideas. She threw out 'Pacific Rim AU'. I started thinking Jaeger names, and it all went downhill from there.

The Amber Beach Shatterdome was not one of the more prestigious stations for the PPDC. An auxiliary station, supporting both the Anchorage Shatterdome and the Los Angeles Shatterdome, the jaegers and their pilots were rarely sent out on solo missions, usually teaming up with a crew from one of the other shatterdomes when there was a kaiju attack.

Ranger Chase Randall didn't mind being at the Amber Beach Shatterdome. What he minded was not having a co-pilot. He had a brand new jaeger, as yet unnamed, but he hadn't been able to find anyone Drift compatible while he was at the Jaeger Academy. They'd shipped him down here, hoping one of the pilot candidates here would work with him, but so far, nothing.

At least, he thought as he made his way down to the Kwoon to get a little practice in, they had two other functional jaegers. Tyler and Shelby had been paired at the Academy, and their chemistry in the Conn-Pod was amazing to watch from LOCCENT during an attack. Tricera Rex had three kills, one solo when the Los Angeles jaeger hadn't been able to get there in time. 

Then there was Paleo Tiger, the most unlikely crew pairing at the shatterdome. Kendall hadn't even been a serious ranger candidate, instead she had been aiming for jaeger tech, but Marshall Pentecost had seen her and Koda practicing in the Academy Kwoon one night and paired them together the next day despite Kendall's objections. They, too, were a remarkable team, with kills on their record.

Noises in the Kwoon made him stop just inside. A young man was on the mats, hanbō in hand, going through the movements of Jaeger Bushido. Chase didn't recognize him, but that wasn't anything new. Ranger candidates were often sent to Amber Beach to gain some time in another Shatterdome, especially if they hadn't paired with anyone in the Academy.

Kicking off his shoes, Chase picked up a hanbō and slowly crept onto the mat, watching the young man's movements. He waited until the right moment, then stepped in, blocking the man's swing.

The man's green eyes narrowed for half a second, then he pulled back, resetting into combat position, giving Chase a short nod. Chase nodded back, resetting himself as well. They watched each other carefully, then Chase attacked, getting blocked just as quickly. He tried to duck under and around, but the other man's hanbō caught his ribs. "One," the man said in a light voice, twirling his hanbō as he reset.

"To three then?" Chase asked, amused by the look he got for his accent. He wasn't the only Kiwi in the PPDC, but most of them were stationed at Sydney.

"You're on," the other man said, attacking just as he finished. Chase defended, but the man was quick, flashing under Chase's guard and scoring on him again. "Two-zip."

Chase didn't respond, barely waiting for his opponent to reset before attacking with furious moves, managing to score a hit on the other man's arm with a feint. "Two-one," Chase said with a grin.

The other man matched the grin. The guy was good, he'd give him that. Their fight for the fourth point of the match was punctuated by almost anticipating each other's moves. Finally, Chase managed to catch the other man on the wrist with a blow. "Two-two," Chase smirked.

The other man didn't respond. Instead he attacked again, hanbō swinging through the air, but Chase managed to jump aside at the last moment. They went back and forth, barely missing each other. It was a dance that Chase hadn't enjoyed in a while. He almost regretted the fact that it would end.

His opponent managed to surprise him, and Chase found himself rolling away, coming back up on one knee, hanbō out, to find his opponent's hanbō mere inches from his face. The man grinned. "Three."

"Three," Chase replied, amused. And, admittedly, a little turned on.

His opponent held out a hand to help him up. "Riley Griffin," he said.

"Chase Randall." Chase found his eyes drawn to Riley's mouth. "Heck of a fighter, Riley."

"I studied sword play before joining the PPDC." Riley walked over to the towels, tossing one at Chase before wiping off his own sweat. 

"Ranger?"

"Hopefully. There's apparently a ranger here, and an unnamed jaeger, that doesn't have a co-pilot yet. I'm supposed to try with him tomorrow, along with the other candidates sent down from the Academy." He looked at Chase. "Someone said not naming jaegers is a tradition here?"

"Not until he or she gets a ranger pair," Chase said. "The two active jaegers were named by their teams. I don't know how it's done in other locations, but Marshall Keeper feels that if a ranger gets to name his jaeger, he'll take better care of it."

"Makes sense. Know anything about the ranger that doesn't have a partner?"

"Trying to get an edge?"

"Maybe. Or trying to see if I know I'm not going to be a match for him, so I should bow out and not take up his time that could be spent finding the right person."

Chase thought of Riley not being at candidate testing tomorrow, and found he loathed that idea. "No, I think you might be pretty compatible with him. You should definitely try out."

Riley grinned at him, and Chase got even more turned on. He wanted to go over and kiss that smile, see how good Riley tasted. But that would be bad protocol, especially with Riley as a candidate for his Drift partner. After the trials, well, that could be different.

"Thanks," Riley was saying. "I appreciate it."

"Welcome," Chase said. "I better head off, busy day for me tomorrow. And you, apparently."

"Yeah. See you around." Riley headed toward the guest quarters. Chase appreciated the view until Riley was gone.

"Yeah, see you," he said. He turned to head back to his quarters, and jumped when he saw Marshall Keeper standing in the doorway. "Marshall," he said, saluting.

"At ease, Chase," the man said. He looked at Chase consideringly. Chase tried not to squirm. Finally, Keeper nodded at him. "Report to your jaeger at 0900."

"What about the trials?" Chase asked.

"You've interacted with all the candidates today, though you may not have realized it. I've seen what I needed to see. Report at 0900 for Drift compatibility testing."

"Yes, sir."

Marshall Keeper left, and Chase stared down at the mat. He'd spoken to a lot of new personnel today, but he didn't know they were his potential co-pilots. That was a bit disturbing, but then again, Marshall Keeper was known for his unorthodox methods of testing rangers.

Putting away the equipment, Chase headed to his quarters. He'd find out what Keeper had in mind tomorrow.

Tonight, well, he had a ranger candidate to dream about.

* * *

Standing in the Conn-Pod in his drive suit, Chase checked the settings on the displays above the feedback cradles. His co-pilot candidate hadn't arrived yet, so Chase moved to the front of the cradle and started checking over the controls he would be using. He'd been over every inch of his baby in the months since she'd been delivered, and yes, he did consider her a 'she'. He hoped the candidate wouldn't mind that, or that Chase preferred to be the left side.

"Two pilots on board," the AI announced.

Moment of truth, Chase thought. He turned around.

Riley Griffin, in an identical drive suit, stood on the right side of the cockpit. "Hi," he said shyly.

"Hi yourself," Chase said.

"So, I guess you were right when you said I was compatible with the unpaired ranger?" Riley asked with a grin.

"Well, I was impressed. Didn't know the Marshall was watching, though."

"Well, he showed up at my door at 0700 and told me to be here by 0900," Riley said. "Guess he saw something."

"Guess so," Chase said as the crew came in. "Ready for this?"

"Is anybody ever ready for their first Drift?" Riley asked as he put his helmet on.

"Nope," Chase said. "See you in a few," he added with a wink as he put his own helmet on.

The crew hooked them into the feedback cradles and they began the warm up of the jaeger, getting the Conn-Pod ready for the drop. Chase stole a glance over at Riley, but the other ranger was focused on the job. This was his first time in the jaeger, so his focus was understandable. As much as he might like that focus to be on him, they had a job to do. A ranger without a partner was useless against kaiju.

"You ready for this, bro?" the voice of the jaeger tech, Matt Griffin, said.

"Born ready, bro," Riley replied. Chase raised an eyebrow at Riley's familiarity with the jaeger tech. Then again, they shared a last name, he realized.

"Bro?" he asked over the comm line.

"Yeah, your test co-pilot is my baby brother, Randall. Treat him nicely, I know where you sleep," Matt said with exaggerated cheer.

"You know where we all sleep, Griffin," Chase said. "It's not exactly a big base."

"Engage the drop, Mr. Griffin," Marshall Keeper said.

"Yes, sir," Griffin replied. "Engaging drop."

Chase looked over at Riley, who nodded. "Release for drop."

The drop was as bad as every drop Chase had been through, but it was over soon and the jaeger's head was attached to the body. 

Once they'd confirmed all the connections, it was time for the Drift. "Engaging neural handshake in three...two..."

One, Chase thought, before he and Riley were pushed into the Drift.

_Running after Matt, trying to keep up with his big brother as they followed their dad around the ranch..._  
_Curled up at mum's side, listening to her read Maori legends to him..._  
_Picking up a sword for the first time, knowing it was right, that it fit him..._  
_Skateboarding furiously down a street, trying to get to the pram, save Moana's Tabitha, almost there..._  
_Matt's hand squeezing his as he gets the tattoo their father promised he'd take Riley to get the day he turned 21, Matt keeping the promise their dad couldn't..._  
_First day at the Shatterdome, meeting Koda and Kendall and Shelby and Tyler, feeling like he was among friends even while he was alone without a partner..._  
_He turns, hanbō caught by another, looking into a pair of gorgeous brown eyes and a way too attractive smirk..._  
_He watches Riley walk away, appreciating the fine behind and the arm muscles visible from the sleeveless top..._

Reality reasserted itself, and Chase blinked away the afterimages to see the screens in front of them showing their linked neural scans. "Neural handshake strong and holding," Matt said into the silence. 

Chase could feel himself and Riley and the jaeger, all three of them one and yet not. It was like flying down the road on his skateboard, like losing himself in his fencing...

"Gentlemen?" Matt asked, breaking into the shared thoughts.

"Right hemisphere ready," Riley said, raising his right arm at the same time as Chase, and their jaeger's arm raised up as well. 

"Left hemisphere ready." Chase, and Riley, raised their left arms, the jaeger following suit. 

They worked through some movements, turning the jaeger's head, moving her arms. She was still in the Shatterdome, so they didn't try to walk, but Chase knew they would be able to handle her, no matter what the weather or the kaiju threw at them. 

Marshall Keeper had them check some of the weapons systems, nothing that would be dangerous, and then ended the test. Chase braced himself for the end of the Drift, being suddenly one and alone again in his head. He shook his head, setting the commands that would disengage them from the harness. He could hear the sounds outside the Conn-Pod that meant the jaeger crews were getting the gantry into place to extract them from the Conn-Pod.

"Wow," Riley said softly. "I didn't know it could be like that."

Chase smirked over at the younger man. Seeing his memories in the Drift, his own appreciation of Chase, well, thank goodness there was no rule against fraternization between co-pilots. If there were, well, Shelby and Tyler and Kendall and Koda would be in trouble. "Me neither," Chase admitted.

The door to the Conn-Pod opened, and they had no more time to talk privately. There were debriefings with Marshall Keeper, hugs for Chase from the other Amber Beach rangers, and for Riley from his brother, a congratulatory "Finally!" party that some prankster on the jaeger crew decided to throw in the mess hall, and then a long watch in LOCCENT when the alarms declared there to be movement in the Breach, and a Category Three headed for the Philippines. Fortunately, it was taken down by jaegers from Tokyo and Sydney before it reached the islands.

Chase yawned as he walked back to his room, tired from the day but too wound up to sleep. He wanted to find Riley, talk to him some more.

"Hey."

Chase turned to see Riley standing in the doorway of the room across from his. "Hey yourself," he replied, walking over to stand at the bottom of the stairs. "They moved you over here?"

"It was open," Riley said. "Wanna come in?"

"Sure." Chase followed him in. Riley didn't have much up yet, most of it seemed to be in a few boxes and duffle bags. There was a picture on the wall already, of a younger Riley and Matt, and what Chase presumed were their parents.

"She needs a name," Riley said into the silence.

"She'll let us know when she's ready," Chase replied, knowing Riley was talking about their jaeger. He turned to see Riley stripping off his shirt. On the right side of his back, just below his shoulder blade, was a tattoo of what looked like a dinosaur. "So that's the tattoo?" he said, remembering the memory that had passed through the Drift.

"My dad used to call me 'Raptor', as in velociraptor, when I was a kid. Said I was fierce and clever, and dangerous with a blade in my hand, like a raptor's talon. So, in his memory, I got this when I turned 21." Riley shrugged, not turning around as he reached into his closet for a shirt. "Matt and I both got tattoos to remind us of dad."

Chase stepped forward, his fingertips coming to rest on the roaring velociraptor. Riley shivered under his touch. Chase couldn't help leaning in, pressing a kiss to the back of Riley's neck.

"Don't start this if you're not serious," Riley said in a growl. He turned around, one hand coming up to fist in Chase's shirt. "Just because we saw that we're attracted to one another in the Drift doesn't mean we need to act on it."

"I'm serious, Riley," Chase said, staring down into his partner's fierce green eyes. "Very serious."

"Good." Riley pulled Chase in closer, kissing the older ranger.

* * *

"Kiwi Raptor," Chase said into the not-quite silence of the room, where the sounds of the night crew of the Shatterdome still penetrated despite shielding.

"Hmm?" Riley asked, nuzzling against Chase's chest before looking up. Chase smiled, brushing a lock of Riley's hair off his forehead. 

"Her name. Kiwi Raptor."

A slow grin crossed Riley's face. "I like it. Goes with the other two jaegers as well."

"But she's still ours."

Riley moved up the bed and kissed Chase. "Yeah," he said when they parted, his fingers moving up to twine with Chase's. "Ours."


End file.
